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Replacing ObamaCare: Insurance Across State Lines (Part 2)

Let’s take a closer look at how interstate insurance sales would impact another important element of consumer-driven health care reform: true insurance. If you’ve forgotten, true insurance is individual insurance. Most people receive their health insurance as the result of a group insurance plan provided by their employer. Some of the benefits of true, individual insurance include portability, better coverage of pre-existing conditions, and greater choice and freedom for consumers.

However, excessive state regulatory mandates can make true insurance outright unaffordable. Consider this excerpt from a 2008 report by the Council for Affordable Health Insurance:

“Access to affordable coverage can vary significantly from state to state, depending on state regulation. For example, community rating and guaranteed issue have made policies in the individual market unaffordable except for the wealthiest residents of Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. If residents living in states with unaffordable health insurance could purchase policies currently being sold in other states, they too would have access to affordable coverage.” (Emphasis added)

There are significant disparities between the states in the number and extent of their regulatory mandates. While Virginia and Rhode Island residents are required to purchase insurance plans burdened with a stunning 70 state mandates, Idaho insurers are only restricted by 13. As health care policy expert Avik Roy explains, “Insurance mandates can raise the costs of premiums by 30-50 percent. If I could buy insurance from another state, where regulations are less onerous, I might not be forced to buy a policy that covers drug-abuse counseling.” (Emphasis added)

Also, let me be clear on one thing: We want to lift the barriers to the interstate sale of health insurance, but we do not want the federal government to begin laying down regulatory mandates (such as guaranteed issue or community rating) on insurance. We believe that the regulation of insurance remains the duty of state legislatures and regulators, not the federal government. Whereas the federal government has the power to remove barriers to commerce among the states, we do not believe that it has the power to regulate insurance sales in each individual state.

Increasing market competition by allowing Americans to purchase health insurance across state lines will lead to lower costs, greater choice, and better quality of care. Representative Paul Broun’s (R-GA) Patient OPTION Act is just one of several conservative bills that will allow Americans to purchase health insurance across state lines. It’s an essential piece of the conservative plan to repeal and replace ObamaCare with affordable, consumer-driven, patient-centered health care.

In order to learn more about ending ObamaCare, check out our “Five-Point Plan” for full repeal!

Hmm... instead of having one regulating entity you have 50. Insurance companies will move to the state with the least regulations and will take over other insurance companies and create monopolies. I just see the regulations confounding each other and creating just a greater degree of beurocracy.

Governor John Kasich, a Republican seeking reelection in 2014, continued his push for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) Medicaid expansion in Ohio with a June 2 USA Today op-ed noting that President Reagan expanded Medicaid in the 80s.

Once upon a time I worked for a huge company, providing communications for their global IT department. I was gathering a team to work on a big project and asked a couple of the more skilled employees to join.“Sorry, Jon, but we’ve been moved to socks. That’s all we do now.” Not hip to the vernacular of the kids, I wondered when our technology firm started selling hosiery. “No, not the socks on your feet. S-O-X. You know, Sarbanes-Oxley?”

The recent revelation that the IRS was engaged in targeting political groups based on ideology has put a spotlight on the unchecked power and scope of that organization. Yet, in 2014, the IRS will assume control over vital functions of ObamaCare - and, therefore, your health care.The following is a breakdown of how the IRS will be able to meddle with your health care, and why this is a terrible idea. These points are available in a handy printout at the bottom this post.

On today’s edition of the FreedomCast, Vice President of Public Policy for FreedomWorks, Dean Clancy joins me to discuss tactics to defund Obamacare, why concierge health care is soon to be on the rise and how John McCain is once again choosing to side with Harry Reid over fiscal conservatives.
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The recent spate of scandals involving the federal government should not surprise anyone. While it's important that bad actors in government be held to account, the system corrupts even the best people. If all that comes of this exposed corruption is the firing of a few public employees, nothing will change, and those seeking power over their fellow man will be emboldened.

Much has been written, especially lately about the failures of Obamacare, as well as major problems in our health care system in general. Maybe it's time to go back to what used to work, and would still work if allowed.

President Obama has not been having a very good month. Between the Benghazi hearings, the IRS scandal, the DOJ getting caught snooping into media phone records, and the NLRB smackdown, he really needs his friends. Usually, when Obama needs friends, he would turn to the unions. Too bad they’re not very happy with him lately, either.

Illinois, like other states, is considering expanding its Medicaid program as envisioned under Obamacare. Doing so takes money that America doesn't have to provide bad health insurance to young, healthy people who don't need it, for the benefit of the people with the best lobbyists.